UAE company, owner in Singapore — accounts and tax handled remotely

The UAE side — handled without you travelling

• Corporate Tax. A company incorporated in the UAE is a UAE Resident Person for Corporate Tax, wherever its owner lives. It must register with the Federal Tax Authority (FTA), keep records for seven years and file an annual return; the rate is 0% up to AED 375,000 of taxable income and 9% above it.
• Free zone 0%. A Qualifying Free Zone Person pays 0% only on qualifying income, and only while it meets all the qualifying conditions — including carrying out its core income-generating activities in the free zone with adequate staff and assets, audited financial statements, the transfer pricing rules and the de minimis limit for non-qualifying revenue (5% of revenue or AED 5 million, whichever is lower). A company managed entirely from abroad may find the substance test hard to meet, so we review it every year.
• VAT. Registration is mandatory once taxable supplies pass AED 375,000 in 12 months and voluntary from AED 187,500. Returns are usually quarterly.
• Access to the FTA. FTA services are accessed through UAE PASS, the UAE's national digital identity, which is personal to each user. We help your authorised signatory set up their own access in line with FTA requirements, and prepare every filing for your approval.
• Beneficial owners. Changes to shareholders or beneficial owners must be recorded and filed within 15 days (Cabinet Resolution No. 109 of 2023).
• Withholding tax. UAE withholding tax is currently 0%, including on dividends the company pays to you abroad.
• Tax Residency Certificate. A UAE-incorporated company can apply for a certificate to claim treaty benefits; a newly incorporated company that has not yet filed a Corporate Tax return must have been established for 12 months first. The FTA asks for documents such as the trade licence and lease, and may ask for more — so the paperwork needs to be in order from day one. If your home country also treats the company as resident, the treaty's own residence rule decides, so a certificate alone may not secure treaty benefits.

All engagements are subject to our client due-diligence checks under UAE anti-money laundering law and applicable sanctions screening.

The UAE–Singapore tax agreement

• Concluded on 1 December 1995 and in force since 1996; a second protocol in force from 16 March 2016 (effective 1 January 2017) made dividends and interest taxable only in the recipient's country of residence.
• A company resident in both countries is treated as resident where its place of effective management is; if that cannot be determined, the tax authorities decide by mutual agreement.
• The multilateral instrument adds a principal purpose test.

Points to watch in Singapore

• Control and management. A company is Singapore resident if its control and management — strategic decisions — is exercised in Singapore, usually where board meetings are held. For virtual board meetings, the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS) generally treats strategic decisions as made in Singapore if at least 50% of the directors with authority to make them, or the chairman, are physically in Singapore during the meeting.
• Dividends to a Singapore company. Foreign dividends received in Singapore are exempt only if they were subject to tax abroad, the foreign headline corporate tax rate is at least 15% and IRAS is satisfied the exemption benefits the company. With the UAE's 9% rate (or 0% for a Qualifying Free Zone Person), that test is not normally met. For groups with revenue of EUR 750 million or more, the UAE's 15% domestic minimum top-up tax may also be relevant.
• Individual owners. Foreign income received in Singapore by resident individuals is generally not taxable, except through a Singapore partnership.
• Groups. Since 1 January 2024, gains from selling foreign assets received in Singapore by group entities without adequate economic substance in Singapore can be taxable.

The Singapore points above are general information about how Singapore rules may interact with a UAE company. They are not Singapore tax advice; please confirm your position with a qualified Singapore adviser.

How you stay in control from Singapore

• Client portal — upload invoices and bank statements, and see your filings and their status, from anywhere.
• Monthly report pack — profit and loss, balance sheet, your VAT and Corporate Tax position, and the deadlines coming up, sent to you every month (or quarter, if you prefer).
• Calls in your time zone — scheduled video calls with your named accountant at times that suit Singapore.
• Nothing filed without your approval — you see every return and the tax figure before it goes to the FTA.
• Working with your Singapore adviser — we advise on UAE tax. For Singapore tax, we work alongside your own adviser and give them the UAE figures and documents they need.

Sources: Federal Decree-Law No. 47 of 2022 on the Taxation of Corporations and Businesses, as amended (Articles 3, 11, 18, 45, 51 and 56); Cabinet Decision No. 116 of 2023; Cabinet Decision No. 100 of 2023, as amended; Ministerial Decision No. 229 of 2025; Ministerial Decision No. 84 of 2025; Federal Decree-Law No. 8 of 2017 on VAT, as amended, and Cabinet Decision No. 52 of 2017 (Executive Regulation, Article 7); Cabinet Resolution No. 109 of 2023; Ministerial Decision No. 247 of 2023 and FTA Tax Residency Certificate guide (TPGTR1, October 2024) and service page; FTA login page (UAE PASS); Ministry of Finance list of double tax agreements; Singapore–UAE Agreement for the Avoidance of Double Taxation (1995), Second Protocol (2014) and MLI version; IRAS — Tax residency of a company; IRAS — Companies receiving foreign income (Income Tax Act 1947, section 13(8) and (9)); IRAS — Income received from overseas (individuals); IRAS e-Tax Guide on gains from the sale of foreign assets (section 10L, June 2025).